Seating at Vivian Beaumont (King & I)

[ukactor19842]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 11:07am

Hi there,

 

I was looking at booking tickets to see The King & I.

 

The seating at the Vivian Beaumont is quite different to other venues - would tickets on the side give a very restricted view or will these be reasonable seats?

 

Any opinions gratefully received.

 

Best wishes,

 

Hamilton

[dramamama611]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 11:25am

Unless you sit th the VERY extreme sides, there are no bad seats in the space. A lovely theater.

[MarkBearSF]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 11:35am

How high is the stage?
I picked up front row center (C 301-302) for our visit in September. I recall talk about the effect of the entrance is best seen from the center (and likely further back) but not about the height of the deck. 
...normally I don't mind not seeing the actors' feet in exchange for seeing their performances up close - and usually great leg room (I'm tall).

[OlBlueEyes]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 11:47am

 

This is what I dug up:

 

The general advice (see -- entertainment-link.com/broadway-teaters.asp - it's listed as "Lincoln Center - Vivian Beaumont Theatre") is to avoid seat numbers above 508 on the right side and 108 on the left. The same source says to avoid loge seats above 506 on the right and 106 on the left.

 

But there is a bias, justified or not, for avoiding the orchestra sides and staying in one of the three orchestra center sections. This, unfortunately, is difficult since those three sections get hit hard immediately.

 

For this show I would share my own experience. The thrust stage is surrounded by audience seats. This can make for a very intimate experience. I found myself almost adjacent to the stage in orchestra center left, about fifteen feet from where Kelli O'Hara twice and Ruthie Ann Miles came to deliver songs. It was a little bit of a thrill to be that close to the stars, and not separated from them in a traditional audience/stage relationship but more like we were both in the same room.

 

I, myself, would like to know how long the stars are committed to the show now that six more month of tickets are on sale. I thought this would be easy to find, but it hasn't been.

 

 

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 11:49am

I sat orchestra right not all the way to the side. I missed the entire back wall (I didn't realize there was a Buddha or throne or whatever is there) and I barely could see the stairway to Buddha at the end of the ballet.

[IdinaBellFoster]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 12:38pm

I suggest sitting in the center section if you can...as others have said, you'll miss a lot of the back of the set. 

 

I also was in the front row, which was amazing overall, but I would've chosen to sit a few rows back in hindsight. Sound was an issue because the orchestra was SO close. Also the opening staging effect would've been better if I didn't have my neck pushed up for the whole number. 

[ukactor19842]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 12:51pm

Thank you so much for the input everyone. Such useful info and I appreciate the time you have taken to respond.

The only tickets available for the date I can go (Friday 22nd May) are in the 'Loge' rather than Orchestra. These would be row C in the section in between the middle and far left sections.

Are the sightlines from the 'Loge' section ok compared to Orchestra? Sorry to be picky! I'm the kind of person who would rather not see a show than 'half see' it due to a poor seat!

[KathyNYC2]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 2:04pm

I sat in the 3rd row in the loge close to the center Section ..fabulous seat. There is an advantage to sitting close up in the orchestra for seeing people's faces, etc. But to see a big beautiful show like this and get all it's scope, we had just perfect seats!

[dramamama611]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 2:17pm

I love the loge there!

[OlBlueEyes]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 2:27pm

I'll basically agree with Kathy. The line of sight in any of the three center loge sections is excellent. The whole theater is small, seating a little over one thousand, so you will be close enough to the stage.

 

You will miss the intimacy, but like Kathy, you might prefer getting the full view of the gorgeous production, especially if you are going to see the show only once.

 

 

[HBBrock]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 3:09pm

I sat first row - very last seat of the extreme side....view was GREAT!

No bad seats at all.

[BroadwayFan12]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 4:20pm

I just know I'm going to love the show, so I'm already looking to see it a second time after I go with my niece. How is orchestra row N seat 503? I will have seen it for the first time from a better seat, but I still don't want to miss too much. Thanks.

[OlBlueEyes]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 5:16pm

 

You know that today they just put seats up for new performances through January. Any show after July 5th will have better seating, since that was the original cut-off.

 

So this is the time to move decisively to get good seats. Which is why I'm trying unsuccessfully to find out how long the stars are under contract to appear.